Lenovo Unveils Entry-Level Workstation

Lenovo today introduced the ThinkStation E31, an update to its ISV-certified entry-level ThinkStation E30 workstation. The new E31 comes in tower and SFF (Small Form Factor) configurations, giving your graphics artists or engineers some flexibility in where they can install their new workstations. Both come with the option for either ISV-certified Intel integrated graphics or a selection of Nvidia discrete graphics solutions.

The ThinkStation E31 workstations come with similar processor options: Intel Core i3/i5/i7 or Intel Xeon E3-1200 v2 professional processors. The v2 in their name indicates that the new Xeon processors are built on the new Ivy Bridge microarchitecture, and will be more efficient and faster than previous models. The systems will support up to 32GB of DDR3 ECC or non-ECC memory, and buyers will be able to option their ThinkStation E31 systems with 7,200 rpm and 10,000 rpm SATA hard drives.

The tower chassis will support up to 9TB of drive space pre-installed, while the SFF chassis supports 6TB. The SFF chassis has a smaller footprint on your worksurfaces, and as such has fewer graphics options: up to and including Nvidia Quadro 600 series graphics cards. The full-sized tower will be able to go up to more powerful Nvidia Quadro 4000 series graphics.

Both ThinkStation E31 chassis models are ISV certified for multiple software packages and applications, including ones from Autodesk, Dassault, PTC, and Siemens. Your contracts may require ISV certification, so it's best to check these before a purchase decision. Other plusses include EPEAT Gold, Energy Star 5.2, and GREENGUARD certification for multiple ThinkStation E31 models. You can configure the workstations with 92 percent and 85 percent efficient power supply units.

Both chassis can be equipped with DVD or Blu-ray optical drives, and both systems have Gigabit Ethernet ports standard. Lenovo ThinkStation E31 systems come with Windows 7 Professional (32-bit or 64-bit) standard, but all systems also support Windows XP, Red Hat Linux, and are Windows 8 ready. ThinkStation E31 tower chassis will be available June 5th and SFF models following on July 13. ThinkStation E31 workstations will start at around $629 base price.